Venezuela Interim Leader Arrives In US For UNGA

Venezuela’s interim leader Delcy Rodriguez has arrived in the United States for the United Nations General Assembly, she said in a social media post on Monday.

Rodriguez’s attendance marks the first participation by a Venezuelan head of state in the event since former president Nicolas Maduro’s speech in 2018.

Maduro was captured in a US military raid in January and is currently being held in a federal jail in New York, where he awaits trial on drug trafficking and other charges.

“We arrived in New York with the determination and hope of a people who believe in nations coming together in unity,” Rodriguez said in a post on X.

“At the 81st General Assembly of the United Nations, Venezuela will be present to make its voice heard and defend its principles, with a work agenda based on respect, cooperation, and understanding,” she said in an earlier post.

Rodriguez was Venezuela’s vice president under Maduro, but has so far cooperated with Trump’s demands, including granting US access to Venezuela’s vast oil reserves, the largest in the world.

Under a recent agreement, the two countries announced that the United States will be granted control of about one-fifth of Venezuela’s reserves.